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LOUSE
| Pronunciation (US): |  | (GB): | |
Irregular inflected form: lice
I. (noun)
Sense 1
Meaning:
Wingless usually flattened bloodsucking insect parasitic on warm-blooded animals
Synonyms:
louse; sucking louse
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("louse" is a kind of...):
insect (small air-breathing arthropod)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "louse"):
common louse; Pediculus humanus (head or body louse)
head louse; Pediculus capitis (infests the head and body of humans)
body louse; cootie; Pediculus corporis (a parasitic louse that infests the body of human beings)
crab; crab louse; Phthirius pubis; pubic louse (a louse that infests the pubic region of the human body)
Holonyms ("louse" is a member of...):
Anoplura; order Anoplura (sucking lice)
Derivation:
lousy (infested with lice)
Sense 2
Meaning:
Wingless insect with mouth parts adapted for biting; mostly parasitic on birds
Synonyms:
bird louse; biting louse; louse
Classified under:
Nouns denoting animals
Hypernyms ("louse" is a kind of...):
insect (small air-breathing arthropod)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "louse"):
chicken louse; Menopon gallinae; Menopon palladum; shaft louse (a louse parasitic on poultry)
Holonyms ("louse" is a member of...):
Mallophaga; order Mallophaga (biting lice)
Derivation:
lousy (infested with lice)
Sense 3
Meaning:
Any of several small insects especially aphids that feed by sucking the juices from plants
Synonyms:
louse; plant louse
Classified under:
Nouns denoting animals
Hypernyms ("louse" is a kind of...):
homopteran; homopterous insect (insects having membranous forewings and hind wings)
Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "louse"):
aphid (any of various small plant-sucking insects)
adelgid (any of various insects that feed and form galls on conifers)
grape louse; grape phylloxera; Phylloxera vitifoleae (destructive to various grape plants)
jumping plant louse; psylla; psyllid (small active cicada-like insect with hind legs adapted for leaping; feeds on plant juices)
oak blight (a black plant louse that lives on oaks and dogwoods)
Derivation:
lousy (infested with lice)
Sense 4
Meaning:
A person who has a nasty or unethical character undeserving of respect
Synonyms:
dirt ball; insect; louse; worm
Classified under:
Hypernyms ("louse" is a kind of...):
disagreeable person; unpleasant person (a person who is not pleasant or agreeable)
Context examples:
Permethrin is used to eradicate parasites such as head lice, ticks and scabies from humans and animals.
(Permethrin, NCI Thesaurus)
The parasite, also known as crab lice, is transmitted through skin to skin contact with an infected person or through direct contact with infested objects.
(Pediculosis Pubis, NCI Thesaurus)
The eggs (nits) of head lice can be mistaken for dandruff, but they are adherent to the hair shafts.
(Human Head Louse, NCI Thesaurus)
A brownish-white colored, sand-like powder with a phosgene-like odor that emits toxic fumes of phosgene gas, hydrochloric acid and other chlorinated compounds when heated to decomposition. a-Hexachlorocyclohexane is the alpha-isomer of hexachlorocyclohexane and is used as an insecticide to treat lice and scabies.
(a-Hexachlorocyclohexane, NCI Thesaurus)
Lice found on each area of the body are different from each other.
(Lice, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
An adult louse is about the size of a sesame seed.
(Head Lice, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
But the most hateful sight of all, was the lice crawling on their clothes.
(Gulliver's Travels into several remote nations of the world, by Jonathan Swift)
Body lice may be 2 - 3 mm long, whereas head and public lice are much smaller.
(Human Body Louse, NCI Thesaurus)
Lice are parasitic insects that can be found on people's heads and bodies.
(Lice, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
Children ages 3-11 and their families get head lice most often.
(Head Lice, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
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